In the Tire Tracks of a Pioneer

"I stand at the intersection of Market and Kearny Streets in San Francisco. Tall buildings block the sun and reflect the noise of the city back onto the pavement while tourists and businesspeople scurry about until the little red hand icon tells them to stop, whereupon they stand at the curb and stare at their phones. I am invisible to the preoccupied masses as I admire Lotta’s Fountain, a 24-foot-tall cast iron relic from the 19th century. This fountain has born witness to plenty of history, from soldiers returning home from war to athletes celebrating championships. And in 1903, a 26-year-old fellow by the name of George A. Wyman mounted his newfangled motor bicycle and left Lotta’s Fountain with the idea of riding across the country."

In 2016 I crossed the country on an electric motorcycle. I followed the route of George A. Wyman, who, in 1903, became the first person to cross the country with a motorized vehicle. The first of five stories about the trip appears in the October 2017 issue of RoadRUNNER Magazine.